Spanish police announced Tuesday that they had dismantled two networks believed to have deceived dozens of families, most of them from Brazil, with false promises to turn their children into professional soccer players.
The police said in a statement that the two gangs ran football schools that attracted boys and young men from well-to-do families abroad, and fed them “false hopes” to turn them into “professional stars” in this sport.
She added that the two networks, which are not connected to each other, were charging each family an initial fee of more than 5,000 euros ($5,400), in addition to monthly payments of up to 1,700 euros per player.
The two gangs claimed that the money was used to cover tuition fees at schools in the city of Granada in southern Spain, in addition to food, housing and papers needed to obtain a residence permit.
Instead, the statement said, the young men “were living in houses provided by clubs in miserable conditions, with little food, and none of them were able to obtain legal residence” in Spain.
The police suspect that the two gangs attracted about 70 boys and young men, “mostly Brazilians”, between the ages of 16 and 23.
Police have arrested 11 members of the two alleged gangs, while two others are under investigation on suspicion of involvement in the case.
The police began their investigations after receiving a complaint from a player who was recruited by one of the two gangs.